Useless degrees

Ha, I owe lots for that as well.

Fuckity.

My fees were still below the £3,300 mark and I paid it off as I went through, using the money saved each month from having paid off being married to now pay for the degree.

In real terms doing the degree didn't affect my take-home each month, but ending the degree did cause it to increase.

Maybe Damo mean it the other way around? Now you have a higher level of qualification you can get paid more.... The company I work for are often paying for employees to go through masters and PhDs. I cannot really understand the thinking behind this. They pay the tutition fees and get a reduced service (study days) so that the employee can ask for more money once they have completed the course. Seems a bit odd. I'm not complaining though...

I'm already paid at around the industry average, with the vast majority (nearly all) of the people at my level already holding an MSc or PhD. So I've effectively been paid as if I had the MSc for a while. So it won't make a difference.

It will only make a difference should I apply for a job and the employer uses a filter based on degree. But then, this will be a step that is unseen by me, so I won't know if it's happened.

fair enough

I meant it as in:
I'm sure there will be a large MSc fees sized hole in the account.....
But there isn't, so double celebrations.

Unless you set up a controlled experiment by applying for the same job with two CVs - one mentioning masters and one omitting it.

That'll only detect whether he's going to be invited for interview. He'd have to wear a mask and go to both interviews to see which pay scale he got offered.

And for a control, I could go as a female. I've always found interviews to be hilarious, they're such a strange construct. It would be funny to go in drag.

Dk- If you want to wear women's clothes, it's ok. There's no need for elaborate constructions.

"no, that was my brother"

"My identical twin brother. I can't be a man, look, I've shaved my legs"

I'll name myself Denis on day 1, and Denise on day 2.

Yup, too much Twin Peaks watching lately.

Thanks all.

I'm a bit bewildered by it, it doesn't change a thing for me as I'm already working at a high level within the industry it would open doors for me. The hope is that long-term it will help prevent me from stagnating or leaving the industry, but now I have it I cannot know for sure that having it makes a difference.

Surely it opens you up for doctorate work in the future!

It could, but edumacation is weird. Most people I know in education at that level are fighting long-term depression brought on by their PhDs. There's a dark place somewhere after year 1, and it gets darker before you come out the other side. I'd have to really believe a PhD was worth it to walk the path.

I don't think I've met a single person who has completed a PhD and enjoyed the experience.

It could, but edumacation is weird. Most people I know in education at that level are fighting long-term depression brought on by their PhDs. There's a dark place somewhere after year 1, and it gets darker before you come out the other side. I'd have to really believe a PhD was worth it to walk the path.

How do you know so much about my life?

It's not really meant to be enjoyable. It is work.

And the other option (get a "real" job) isn't that appealing either.

You'd better marry into money then.

Not being appealing, and refusing to do it are two different things. A PhD does lead to a job for many people. At some point you need to decide what is is you want to do to "make a living." I've decided, at this point, if I'm lucky enough, that job will be based in academia. This is largely based around an irrational and serious fear of 9-5 jobs. But I also enjoy my research. So that's good.

^What subject do you do? Did you go straight into it from your degree?

I'm thinking of going down the academic route but am pretty scared of all the cuts that are coming ;(

Long term depression?
More like post traumatic stress disorder.

I was a social handgrenade.

^What subject do you do? Did you go straight into it from your degree?

I'm thinking of going down the academic route but am pretty scared of all the cuts that are coming ;(

History of Ideas (18th century political philosophy).

I've taken time off here and there (a few years before my undergrad, which was also part-time for a couple of years [needed to work to pay my way through before I finally sorted out loans], a year between my masters and PhD).

I'm sceptical of people who go from undergrad to masters to PhD without any time off (especially in the UK, where programmes are shorter). I find it very hard to talk to those people.

Here's hoping the cuts don't affect the job market too much (again, assuming I get to that point).

I was a social handgrenade.

Now that sounds like me recently.